Management change at iHeartMedia’s Black-oriented stations

Kashon Powell replaces Derrick Brown in role

A mangement change at iHeartMedia’s cluster targeting Black audiences was announced Friday as Kashon Powell succeeds Derrick Brown as Vice President of Programming. Effective immediately, she takes over programming duties for Hip-Hop WGCI-FM, Adult R&B V103/WVAZ, Gospel WGRB-AM, and all-news WMFN (640 AM), which is part of the Black Information Network. 

“I am excited to return to iHeartMedia to lead these legendary brands and contribute to the legacy of such iconic radio station”, said Powell via press release. “A huge thank you to [Senior Vice-President of Programming] James Howard, Thea Mitchem, Brad Hardin, and Doc Wynter for this incredible opportunity.”

Powell will report to Howard, as she comes to iHeartMedia from Radio One, where she was recently held the same position at Radio One’s Beltway stations, in Baltimore and Washington D.C., and created and executive produced Urban One honors (Urban One is a secondary name Radio One uses for marketing purposes.) Powell began her career at Radio One’s Houston station in 1992, and a decade later, landed as Urban Editor at the now-defunct trade magazine Radio & Records before landing at then-Clear Channel’s WDAS-FM/WUSL in Philadelphia and later ran a cluster of stations in Virginia as Director of Urban Programming. 

“Kashon has an exceptional track record of success, consistently driving results and inspiring teams”, said Howard. “We are thrilled to welcome her to our Chicago team where her expertise will help strengthen the connection with our listeners.”

As for Chicago native Brown, he departs a role he has held since 2009, two years after he was named Program Director of V103 – a milestone in an industry where turnover is often frequent. No word on why he decided to depart iHeartMedia as he declined comment.

V103 is the highest-rated among iHeartMedia’s Black-oriented stations, followed by WGCI and WGRB. iHeartMedia’s four stations competes with Crawford’s Adult R&B Soul 106.3 and Hip-Hop Power 92 while one competitor (Streetz 95.1) was shuttered April 30 but remains online.